Surrey LRT set to put down tracks
10 years of work ends in search for contractor to build $1.65B line
TransLink has begun its search for a contractor to build the $1.65-billion light rail line that’s planned for Surrey.
“This is a very big day for the region, for TransLink and for this project. This is a day we’ve been working toward for, literally, about 10 years,” said Sany Zein, TransLink’s vice-president of engineering and infrastructure management.
On Wednesday, a day after it was announced that the business case for the Surrey-Newton- Guildford light-rail project had been approved, TransLink issued a request for qualifications.
Project director Stephan Mehr said Partnerships B.C., a provincial agency, would be helping with the procurement process.
He said the City of Surrey would also be involved in the evaluation process to make sure the right group was chosen to build the LRT and all of the attendant infrastructure, such as roads and sidewalks.
Mehr said the project would be delivered as a short-term public-private partnership, and the proponent would be required to design, build, supply vehicles for, finance, operate, maintain and rehabilitate the rail line.
“It’s really a full package, which makes it advantageous in terms of innovation, and opportunities, and financing,” said Mehr.
The agreement would have an 11year term, after which TransLink would take over operations and maintenance of the line. “That’s good for us on this project. It enables us to become very familiar with not only this technology, but also with all of the infrastructure.”
The line will comprise 11 stations along a 10.5-kilometre, L-shaped route. The stations will be located along 104th Avenue at Guildford Exchange, 152nd Street, 148th Street, 144th Street and 140th Street, at Surrey Central and King George, and along King George Boulevard at 96th Avenue, 88th Avenue, 80th Avenue, 76th Avenue and Newton Exchange.
Sixteen articulated trains will run on the tracks, arriving at fiveminute intervals during peak hours. A trip between Guildford and Newton is expected to take 27 minutes, or less if the city and TransLink can make it more efficient through signalling and intersection improvements.
Currently the same trip using B Line buses takes between 30 and 50 minutes, depending on time of day and traffic conditions.
The request for qualifications will close on Oct. 31, after which TransLink will review the submissions and ask three proponents to submit detailed proposals. It’s expected the contract will be awarded in late 2019, with construction starting in 2020. The line is scheduled to be completed in 2024.
Mehr said TransLink will be “very scrupulous” when choosing a contractor.
“The market is extremely interested in bidding on this project,” Mehr said.
“In fact, we believe there are going to be quite a lot of contractors bidding for this or going for the qualification, so we’re going to have a very good set of high-quality potential proponents to go to the short list.”
Funding for the Surrey LRT is provided by the federal government, TransLink and the City of Surrey. The federal government is contributing $483.8 million, while the regional contribution is $1.12 billion. Surrey has paid about $20 million for some pre-construction work, while $43 million in regional funding was provided previously for planning. The provincial government has contributed 40 per cent of the cost of the second phase of a 10-year regional transportation investment plan, which includes rapid transit in Surrey and Vancouver, but is directing most of its share of funding to the Broadway subway project in Vancouver. This is because the province already owns the existing SkyTrain and its assets.
Zein said the project will be “transformational” for Surrey.
“It’s going to be the most significant construction project delivered in the City of Surrey, and it’s a very exciting time for both the region and the city,” he said.